Hospitals, nursing homes, and other patient care facilities typically include patient monitoring devices at one or more bedsides in the facility. Patient monitoring devices generally include sensors, processing equipment, and displays for obtaining and analyzing a patient's physiological parameters. Physiological parameters include, for example, blood pressure, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation (SpO2) level, other blood constitutions and combinations of constitutions, and pulse, among others. Clinicians, including doctors, nurses, and certain other caregiver personnel use the physiological parameters obtained from the patient to diagnose illnesses and to prescribe treatments. Clinicians can also use the physiological parameters to monitor a patient during various clinical situations to determine whether to increase the level of care given to the patient. Various patient monitoring devices are commercially available from Masimo Corporation (“Masimo”) of Irvine, Calif.
During and after surgery and in other care situations, respiratory rate is a frequently monitored physiological parameter of a patient. Respiratory rate can be indicated as the number of breaths a person takes within a certain amount of time, such as breaths per minute. For example, a clinician (such as a nurse, doctor, or the like) can use respiratory rate measurements to determine whether a patient is experiencing respiratory distress and/or dysfunction.